Need for Human Custom – Mahatma Gandhi

[Prof. Dr. Yogendra Yadav]

Prof. Dr. Yogendra Yadav

Senior Gandhian Scholar, Professor, Editor and Linguist

Gandhi International Study and Research Institute, Jalgaon, Maharashtra, India

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Need for Human Custom – Mahatma Gandhi

 

Dr. P.C. Ray, who at his ripe age of 75 is exhibiting in the interest of suffering humanity the energy of youth, writes: The custom for fine khadi has fallen off even before the expected or rather threatened rise in prices. When it falls further, if it does, it will do so not because of the rise in prices but undoubtedly because of want of love or humanity in the buyer. Humanity does not search for low prices in a spirit of bargain. The humane in man, even in his purchases, seeks opportunities of service, and therefore wants to know first not the price of the article of purchase but the condition of its producers, and makes purchases in a manner that serves most the most needy and deserving. If a sufficiently large number of men and women were actuated by this spirit of love of fellow beings, there would be an ever-increasing demand for khadi, and now more than ever, because of the knowledge that extraordinary care is being taken to assure to the humblest spinner at least a subsistence wage a wage which would enable her not merely to eke out a living somehow but which would enable her to get sustaining food. Side by side with the attempt to give khadi artisans a subsistence wage there must be an attempt to find a better, i.e., more natural market for khadi. We have hitherto been satisfied with the easy way of obtaining custom only in the big cities such as Bombay, Calcutta, Madras, etc. This was surely wrong.

I have suggested to Dr. Ray that he should, if his health permits, deliver his message of love to the places surrounding the producing centres. The whole of Bengal wears fine cloth. Why should it not wear fine khadi? Under the new scheme it is possible to cheapen khadi if Bengal will produce cotton not for speculation but strictly for home use. But that day may be far off. For the time being Bengal as the rest of India should buy khadi for humanity’s sake, not in a commercial spirit, counting the cost. We do not count the cost and find out what our children or our aged parents cost us. We support them at any cost. Should we do less for our millions of brothers and sisters who are starving by reason of our criminal neglect of them for centuries? We may leave no part of India neglected. The science of khadi requires decentralization of production and consumption. Consumption should take place as nearly as possible where khadi is produced. All effort should be directed towards that end. We may produce for the demands of the cities, but should never depend upon them as we would on the local market. We must first study the local market and supply its wants. And since all khadi artisans and wherever possible all artisans working under the aegis of the A. I. S. A. or A. I. V. I. A. will be expected to use khadi, a minimum demand will thus always be assured. Satis Babu and Shri Jethalal of Anantapur have made independent calculations and have concluded that self-sufficing khadi will mean two yards of sale outside against three yards of wear by the artisans.

If the calculation is correct, self-sufficing khadi to be popular will need considerable support from local markets. Since other industries will go hand in hand with khadi, it may be that self-sufficing khadi will receive help through village industries other than khadi. The test of self-sufficing khadi lies in the fact that it will cost the wearer practically nothing but his labour. Self-sufficing khadi will never spread unless local markets are created all over the country and demand stabilized. In order to ensure stabilization it is necessary to define areas for every producing centre so as to avoid overlapping and unhealthy competition among workers attached to the same organization.

 

Reference:

Harijan, 2-11-1935